Dearest Clients, Customers, Family, Friends, and Fans:
Most of you fit into more than one of those categories, so thank you for that. Truly. I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity to provide a few rays of sunshine in your life, as you have in mine.
Ampersand has never been a “normal” business. So I’m not sure why it’s taken me more than two years to figure out that this business doesn’t fit into a neat little box.
But that’s a good thing! We’ll never be a faceless, big-box retail shop. Not even close. For starters, we have wildly inconsistent and inconvenient hours, lol.
Speaking of which….
Our business plan has changed.
The retail shop is no longer be open for day-to-day walk-ins.
But that’s a good thing too!
There are SO many ways to purchase flowers from us. And we're talking about the same quality, long-lasting, and locally-grown-whenever-possible stems you’ve come to know and love.
Here’s the logic behind this exciting decision: Our lease is up in about a year, and we’re not sure yet what the fate of our brick & mortar might be.
Also, if I’m being totally transparent here, running the retail shop takes 90% of my time but accounts for 10% of the revenue. And I can’t afford to hire someone to run the retail side of things without raising the prices—and I really, really, really don’t want to raise the prices.
So! All of that said, here’s the updated plan moving forward:
How to purchase flowers “by-the-stem”
We’ll be hosting "The Great Big Flower Sale" on the first Wednesday of every month, from 1pm until 7pm, or until the flowers run out. It'll be set up just like the retail shop was: lots of gorgeous blooms “by-the-stem,” and we’ll wrap your selections in butcher paper for you to take home and enjoy.
We’ll also be hosting flash sales at various points throughout the month. So be sure to follow us on Instagram for exclusive announcements of when these sales will happen—because they’ll usually happen on short notice.
Any of our customers are welcome to place a standing order to have fresh selections curated for you based on your décor, style, the season, and/or your color preferences. You can choose to have these flowers waiting for you to pick up every week (or every-other-week) between 12pm and 2pm on Wednesdays, or between 4pm and 6pm on Thursdays.
How to order flowers online
Simply visit our website and click on “ORDER FLOWERS.”
We’ve expanded our delivery radius up to 15 miles, and we’re still offering free delivery within three miles of the shop.
The only changes online are that we won’t be doing same-day deliveries, and all of our orders will be delivered on Thursdays and Fridays. For more details, check out our brand-new FAQ page.
We also offer the option to do a local pickup, and your flowers will be available at the shop between 12pm and 2pm on Wednesdays, or between 4pm and 6pm on Thursdays.
And for most holidays (Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Thanksgiving), we'll be expanding our available days for deliveries and/or pickups.
Hosting an event
We’re offering more amenities to make the space even better for hosting events. New features include a refrigerator, a microwave, additional prep space, a new soft-seating area, and much more.
Our capacity is the same (a maximum of 30 guests), but the updated floor plan will be more flexible, allowing guests additional room to mingle.
And, bonus: Worthington and Clintonville residents will receive a 10% discount on our rental rates! Just mention this before we send you the event contract please. And be sure to ask about a potentially FREE rental for any Worthington or Clintonville non-profit group!
To reserve a date, simply visit our online-booking calendar, where you can check availaiblity in real time.
Lastly, everything with our wedding services will stay the same…
…except now I might actually have time to get caught up and send out those long-awaited proposals to all of you *incredibly* patient souls still waiting on a quote from me.
THANK YOU
to each and every one of you for your continued support over these last few years.
We’ve officially been running this business in a pandemic (24 months) for 4 TIMES LONGER than we ever ran this business NOT in a pandemic (6 months), and we wouldn’t still be here without YOU. So happy New Year, friends! May 2022 be everything you ever wanted it to be—and then some!